Sicko is a 2007 documentary produced, written and directed by the American filmmaker Michael Moore. The film investigates the United States health cares system, focusing primarily on health insurance and the pharmaceutical industry. Moore does not in fact pose questions as to how America should reform its health care however it does suggest many solutions.

Michael Moore depicts the American health care system as one that contains many flaws. He goes on to show different people who have not been able to afford the ridiculous sum of money to perform certain procedures. While scrutinizing the American health care system Michael ventures to Canada, France, Cuba and Great Britain in an attempt to compare health insurance and pharmaceuticals. The audience is invited to believe that America has the worst health care out of all five countries. Through this documentary film Moore suggests the causes for this predicament blaming the government for accepting bribes. Using the voices of different members of major insurers he is able to paint viewers a picture of the devastation people face. Moore uses unbalanced arguments and evidence to convincingly impose his biased opinion upon his audience. This is seen through a majority of Sicko. Moore positively portrays the health care systems of other countries, produces incorrect information and does not declare laws that have been put in place; he also uses editing techniques to show false images.

Michael Moore sugar coats the Canadian health care system by not mentioning to viewers the long waiting lists and even cancelations of lifesaving surgery. There are even waiting lists to get on waiting lists. Due to this, Timely Medical Alternatives is a thriving business that specializes in transporting Canadians, who don’t want to wait for medical care, to Buffalo. Moore also fails to mention that there is a law prohibiting Canadian citizens from paying for urgently needed medical treatments or from obtaining private health care....

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... What contradictions existed at the same time?
2. The film notes the Reagan era as a dividing line between the rise of the "middle class" and its current decline. What policies did Reagan usher in and why? What were the results?
3. Moore provides stories about the impact of privatization on local communities. What were some of these?'
4. Corporations repeatedly claim that cutting jobs will allow them to save money and stay in business. Why does this not seem to work much in the examples detailed in the film?
5. Moore talks with workers and farmers about the impact of economic conditions and policies on their lives. What were some of their stories? What ways did they express solidarity with one another?
6. The film elaborates and mocks ideological justifications for capitalism. What were some of the claims for why capitalism is so good? What problems do you see with those claims?
7. The film focuses heavily on a moral condemnation of capitalism. Do you agree with that approach? Many Marxists prefer what they call a scientific critique of capitalism? Which do you prefer? Which is more effective in touching the experiences of working-class people?
apitalism: A love Story. By MichaelMoore.
As we know, MichaelMoore is a liberal film producer, and sometimes subjective, who criticizes the problems that affect the United States of America. His documentary Capitalism: A...

...﻿Gabriela V. Hernandez
Prof. Thomas
PHI2604
12 November 2014
Film review of “Sicko”
Michael Moore’s last two films were based on opinions that many people vehemently opposed: that America has too many guns, and that George W. Bush is a bad president. It didn’t matter how persuasive the films might have been, because half the population disagreed with them before the opening credits even rolled.
But with “Sicko,” Moore turns his attention to the American healthcare system, and his central theme is that it needs to be reformed. I think that’s common ground, don’t you? We can argue about what remedies the system needs, and the best way to go about it, and plenty of people will think Moore is off-base for suggesting socialized medicine. But Republican or Democrat, liberal or conservative, don’t we all agree that the current system is wrong? Let’s use that as the starting point and let the discussion evolve from there.
There are 50 million Americans who have no health coverage at all and “Sicko” is not about them. “Sicko,” Moore says, is about the other 250 million Americans, the ones who have health insurance yet STILL get a raw deal. This movie is about how American health insurance companies exploit every means possible to avoid actually paying for their customer’s medical needs, and how people sometimes die because of it. The “lucky” ones live, and are stuck...

...Dawli 10
Elias Dawli
Wrt­105
Professor Bollinger
December 12, 2010
SiCKo: The Thought­Provoker
Michael Francis Moore is a controversial American filmmaker who has directed
numerous documentaries. These documentaries have taken a large spectrum of popular
American issues and reduced them to one: capitalism. His most popular cinematic works
include Bowling for Columbine, Fahrenheit 9/11, Capitalism: A Love Story, and
most­notably, SiCKo. With a liberal stance, Moore has documented his own vision on
America’s large corporations, such as the Bush administration’s foreign policy, financial crises,
and the American healthcare system. Although all of his movies are worth naming, SiCKo is
one of Moore’s most complex documentaries, for it discusses the issue of the United States of
America’s healthcare system. The issue is not only complex, but also highly debated for it
affects the lives of millions of Americans in very profound ways. Broderick Fox, author of
Documentary Media History, Theory, Practice, illustrates different styles that filmmakers use
in documentaries. For example, he writes, “The interventional gaze makes no attempt to hide,
but rather actively confronts the situation” (Fox 104). Throughout the movie SiCKo, ...

...﻿
Critical Analysis of Capitalism: A Love Story
Lee Seok Kim
Practical Economics
Steven Mesaros
May 1, 2015
Critical Analysis of Capitalism: A Love Story
Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story examines the impacts of the current economic and social orders in United States in general, putting Moore’s personal complaints upon nowadays spoiled capitalism. The film is overly asserting the capitalism presented by deceptive politicians who converted the society to a huge weapon that made a delightful society only to top 1% of the American population. High-class people attempted to maintain this tough society and sacrificed majority citizens. Overall, MichaelMoore tried to convey a criticism of the spoiled capitalism which sacrifices majority 99% of US citizens to sustain a society for top 1% throughout the film.
In the film, MichaelMoore reveals scenes that represent corruptions of the capitalism. However, an original capitalism in United States seems to be a great and ideal society. As the United States became the richest nation in the world and started to beat other nations’ companies such as Japanese and German car industries, most Americans reached American dreams and had satisfied lives even if their maximum tax rate reached a peak of 90%.
This capitalism started to spoil after Ronald Reagan became a new president in 1980 due to the wholehearted supports from banks and companies in the Wall...

...﻿Patterson Feb 28th, 2014
ENG 201-08
MichaelMoore “Sicko”
I have heard of Mr. MichaelMoore doing controversial films on events in America, such as “Fahrenheit 9/11”. After “Fahrenheit 9/11” I had not follow Mr. MichaelMoore. Since the movie “Sicko” that Professor Irene Zola showed during class on Friday, February 28th, 2014 I check to see what else Mr.Moore was doing. It seems Mr. MichaelMoore has been very busy as more than a filmmaker but as an activist with the type of films he makes.
The film “Sicko” is what I would call one of his activist film documentaries. This film was about the Health care in the United States and in Canada. The film to some point was used to put shame on the Insurance Health Care Industry in the United States. Mr. Moore did this by showing his on film how the Insurance Health Care Industry in America has cause the death of people, financial hardship due to insurance or medical high cost. Mr. Moore went as far as interviewing some Doctors as well as people who worked for insurance companies that know from inside experiences the truth of the matter. The matter being, how people in America insurance claims or insurance policies are rejected by Insurance companies just to save a buck. This is an outrage. Now to compare Mr....

...Kelly Enright
Haden
Theater
Auteur Paper
MichaelMoore
Director MichaelMoore is one of the most controversial movie makers of our time. His documentaries look to our government and media for a reason to the problems of out troubled nation. He uses strong statements and sometimes rude actions to get the reactions and shots he needs to make his films interesting. His movies always dissect the most sensitive topics that are on the American citizens' minds. Two of the most controversial movies of the 21st century were both made by MichaelMoore. These are Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11.
Fahrenheit 9/11 is his most recent documentary. This movie touches on what Moore believes is the gross negligence that he believes the Bush administration demonstrated before and during the attack on America. MichaelMoore used old news clips and other family video to show George W. Bush's many failures before coming into office. He continually questioned the means that Bush used to fund these many businesses. Throughout these scenes Moore, speaking over these clips, suggests that much of the money the Bush family has came from the Bin Laden family and other Saudi Arabian sources. For the election of Bush and Gore, he used clips from many main news channels. He showed how the entire election was shrouded in controversy....

...Reflection on Sicko
AODA Rehab. Gateway Technical College
By, Scott Balcer
Reflection on Sicko
After watching Sicko by Micheal Moore, needless to say I was sickened. I knew from owning my own business and not having health insurance myself that medicine and DR. visits were expensive. But, I had no idea of the history, depth, and inside workings of the U.S. medical and pharmaceutical industry. When I saw the people that assisted with 911 unable to get free help and the help they did get was expensive and horrific, I was overwhelmingly shocked. I always knew, from my own experiences as a combat veteran, that the government were lying criminals. But, the way they treat the evil doers in jail with free health car and deny Hard working Americans the same treatment is appalling. After watching this film my opinions about the health care of the nation I fought for and would have died for is so strong, that there have been times that I have had to walk away from discussions to avoid my anger. How could an inhaler cost .60 cents in Cuba and 60 dollar in America? It makes absolutely no sense! How can other countries such as France, Great Britain, and Cuba have better health care than the United States of America? I know that this issue goes much deeper than the movie shows. One time, while I ran my business and had to pay for all the prescriptions and doctor visits, my cost just for strep throat was over 400 dollars for...

...
Political Science
Sicko Extra Credit
The movie we watched in class interested me and I learned a lot about health insurance in America. It surprised me to know that nearly 15 million people have no health insurance. Personally, I have never had a problem with health insurance so it surprised me to know that so many people have suffered and have had such tragic problems. A couple became bankrupt from co pay and deductibles and the man had heart attacks and the woman had cancer. Also, there is a man who has to keep working until the age of 70 because Medicare doesn’t cover the medicine that him and his wife need. It made me sad to see all these people in America suffer so much even if they had health insurance. MichaelMoore started hearing out these people and decided to figure out if it was only in America where people have suffered from health insurance. In America, people can get rejected for any little reason the hospital can find even if they are small problems. The system is supposed to be fair, but to health insurance companies; it’s their money. In Canada a man named Brad lost five fingers and the hospital did not care if he had insurance or not. They just saw a man in pain and decided to help him. In Great Britain prescription drugs were only ten dollars. People thought it was funny when Michael asked if they ever had to pay for a stay in the hospital. The system in America all started with democracy and...